BRADENTON, Fla., Sept. 28, 2010 -- The Washington Post exists in a stratosphere of journalism inhabited by only half a dozen newspapers in the world, if that. It has an exceptional reputation for fine work, and its original reporting is envied throughout the world - except when it comes to UFOs.

Many have remarked on the apparent inability of major media to report objectively on even a few of the UFO sightings that occur all across this country every day. Anyone familiar with the UFO reporting site MUFON.com or the daily UFO Examiner has quickly come to the conclusion that there are baffling events taking place in the world's skies that are unexplained, and insofar as major media is concerned, are usually unreported.

Every once in a while, an incontrovertible sighting like the Jan. 8, 2008, Stephensville, Tex., incident will get respectful reporting, and so do decisions by official bodies like the British Ministry of Defense and the Vatican when they release document troves or make an official statement on the topic, respectively. But the media generally do not cover the subject with respect, and editors usually don't let reporters do so when they'd like to give it a try.

Today, the Washington Post carried a strange, whimsical story by Metro section columnist John Kelly in which he seemed to report more on his gustatory choices than the lengthy press conference he attended at the National Press Club yesterday (see CNN's live coverage below left). There, seven retired military men spoke frankly and clearly about a wide range of UFO sightings over their Minuteman rocket silos and other nuclear weapons storage sites in the United States. For Kelly, it was all a big joke.

In contrast, here's how one Gannett newspaper, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, covered the story:

WASHINGTON -- Armed with declassified documents and vivid details, a group of former Air Force officers gathered yesterday to go public with an assertion they have kept mostly under wraps for decades: that UFOs visited the bases they were stationed at and caused nuclear weapon system to temporarily malfunction.

The group, convened by UFO researcher Robert Hastings, went to the National Press Club in Washington to discuss individual experiences and urge a government that tried to ignore and silence them when they came forward years ago to finally come clean.

Hastings said he believes that visitors from outer space are fixating on nuclear weapons because they want to send a message: disarm before the world destroys itself.

Robert Salas, a former missile launch officer at Malmstrom Air Force Base, said 10 nuclear missiles were suddenly and inexplicably disabled in March 1967 at the Montana installation after members of his flight security team saw a "large glowing, pulsating red oval-shaped object" about 30 to 40 feet in diameter hovering over the front gate. When he reported the incident to his superiors the next day, he was told to keep quiet.

"What you have heard today is evidence of a phenomenon. It sounds fantastic, and it is fantastic," said Salas, after he and his fellow officers from other bases in the western United States shared similar accounts. The government, Salas said, is "deliberately withholding the facts, continuously since 1969 and, by doing so, do not allow the people of this country to engage in the decision regarding events that are clearly a national security issue for concern all of us. We're simply asking for the truth."

From 1947 to 1969, the Air Force investigated unidentified flying objects under what was called Project Blue Book. Of a total of 12,618 sightings under the program, 701 remained "unidentified." The military discontinued the program after consulting with scientists and concluding that none of the objects posed a threat to national security or could be identified as "extraterrestrial."

When asked to comment on the assertions, an Air Force spokeswoman cited a 2005 fact sheet that said: "Since the termination of Project Blue Book, nothing has occurred that would support a resumption of UFO investigations."

Hastings said he has heard of a UFO incident occurring at Malmstrom as recently as 2007.

The declassified documents Hastings presented at yesterday's news conference include decades-old government memos detailing reports of sightings of objects in the skies above Alabama, Montana, New Mexico and North Dakota.

There was no mistaking the seriousness of these men and their sightings (a near-complete video is available on YouTube), yet the Post basically mocked them, and Kelly's treatment predictably suggested they were all nuts. The newspaper apparently saw no news value in a story that presented 120 different U.S. servicemen's honest accounts of UFO encounters at nuclear facilities.

It seems to me that a better newspaper (and it's hard to imagine one, really) - if its editors shared Kelly's doubts about the witnesses' sanity - would have asked this question: Are U.S. nuclear sites operated by hallucinating lunatics? Because either these men are out-and-out liars and lunatics, or they have seen things that demand far more serious inquiries than have so far occurred.

The Post's treatment of the press conference is more fodder for the many folks who believe that newspapers will not tell the truth about these matters. That's a theme echoed in NBC's new Monday night drama, "The Event," in which even the President is warned away from telling the American people what he's learned about human-like extraterrestrials held secretly for 66 years in an Alaskan prison.

At least one American president has seen UFOs, but while several have tried none have ever unlocked the vaults and let the American people see what we really know. A fascinating Website, in fact, is devoted to the interaction of a half-dozen American presidents with the UFO community and national intelligence agencies. In the end, the presidents proved powerless to turn over the most heavily classified UFO documents to the public, or even offer us a rational explanation for any but the most mundane incidents. To me, that demonstrates that whatever is at the core of this phenomenon is classified at a higher pay grade than the President's.

CNN LiveUSAF officials on UFO experiences

While the Post's story is not really worth reading, I thought it was highly instructive to read all the reader comments (including my own) posted early this morning. I have taken the liberty of reposting them below. They have not been edited, and mine was the latest at the time I copied them all. You can't read these comments without believing the Post and other major media - excepting CNN, which ran the live video I mentioned - are unable to come to grips with something no one can explain, and lack the courage to say so.

Your Comments On...

UFO visits to nuclear facilities? Hmmmm.

A group of UFO witnesses meets at the National Press Club to describe the systematic visitation of American nuclear facilities.

-
By John Kelly

Comments

amreporter wrote:

It sure is compelling to note how quickly the Post abandons its objectivity and journalistic values when UFOs become involved. Unlike your reporter, I saw almost all of the press conference on a 45-minute (?) CNN Live video stream. What I heard from the witnesses was pretty convincing evidence of UFOs. At the same time, it was obvious that no one had any idea where they come from, what they are doing or what they want. Maybe we need a few more decades of nonsense like John Kelly's account before we suddenly sit straight up and listen hard.

9/28/2010 2:17:04 AM

skilimonski wrote:

Obviously you did not listen to any of the gentlemen with an open mind or open heart. Obviously you did not do you research before entering the conference. There are so many of us out here in the world who have been trying to get people to pay attention to these facts. We have been called crazy and all other sorts of insults. But today I am shocked at all the "UFO" info that is being released in recent months through MSM. I am more shocked that Mr. Kelly did not give this story the proper seriousness it deserved from the Post! This just goes to show how biased and controlled you reporters and Newspapers really are. Shame on you sir. I hope those cookies give you explosive diarrhea.

9/28/2010 2:14:59 AM

helmetshortbus wrote:

I believe history will treat Mr. Kelly as well as James Oberg with the same respect they have given this subject.

9/28/2010 1:45:14 AM

CVal wrote:

Why does the author feel a need to interject what is supposed to be humor about eating cookies in a story about something so serious. The last ice age could well have been brought on by a nuclear fire storm. Is it crazy to believe that mankind could advance so rapidly as we have in the last 200 years, but that over many hundreds of thousands of years, another people couldn't have accomplished such feats? Be wary though, just because they are alien beings, does not mean they come from outer space.

9/28/2010 12:21:01 AM

zzapperz wrote:

when 6 highly credentialed retired AF Officers say our nukes were taken off line and activated, it seems to me legit press should be all over this.

maybe the biggest cookie was the kelly

9/28/2010 12:06:18 AM

mylesstam wrote:

I second most of the comments made here. What terrible reporting from someone who already produced an opinion before arriving late to the event. No respect for these brave men. I really think that when a journalist writes a story they should do some sort of research before writing an article or covering a conference.

The only thing that will change this persons mind is if a UFO lands on the White House lawn. God I hope that does not happen. You really do not want the ramifications of that situation. Do some research and you may find out what happens when a more advanced nation encounters less technologically advanced people. Or just ask any Native American.

9/27/2010 11:56:17 PM

mexantique wrote:

Mr. Kelly,
I find your mockery of these highly qualified military men with top secret clearances to be disrespectful in the extreme. They are courageous to come forward, and to see them treated in this manner by the Washington Post is a disgrace.

Public tolerance of the long-time official policy of ridicule is at an end.

You have made an utter fool of yourself.

9/27/2010 11:24:08 PM

cordgrass wrote:

An impressive feat of journalism and objective reporting.

9/27/2010 11:23:36 PM

mercurymax wrote:

Well Kelly, being dismissive of what a lot of folks consider to be a serious subject.hmmm
Typical. I like your hat....

9/27/2010 11:11:18 PM

Tara12 wrote:

Clearly our former military chiefs are made of tougher stuff than the sniveling members of mainstream media who would pee all over themselves before they'd have the guts to treat this as serious news.

9/27/2010 11:10:41 PM

illogicbuster wrote:

This may sound strange but, I am glad that the media isn't taking this seriously and that the gov't has been successful in withholding the data.

All I will say is that there is a VERY good reason for keeping this data from the public at large...

9/27/2010 11:01:11 PM

northernches wrote:

I am very dissapointed in the lack of respect and incompetence in the writing of this story. What has happened to the editorial staff at the Washington Post? I have watched the video tapes of the presentations, and I encourage other readers to do the same. One can easily find the tapes on the web.

9/27/2010 10:43:09 PM

eric70 wrote:

I was invited to participate in a navy project that studied unidentified aerial phenomenon. I was never asked to sign a non disclosure document, so I feel justified in sharing what I know. Some of the objects in and near earth's atmosphere are highly advanced mechanical objects with computer like brains that have enormous processing power. There are no 'aliens' inside them. The craft themselves are what is 'alive'. The hypothesis is that since they are found near earth, there are likely trillions of these objects throughout the universe and the assumption is that they self replicate. They are not 'visiting' the earth in any sense. They are simply near the earth, just as they are likely near every planet in the universe given the vast number of them in the universe. The population is billions of years old. The reason for secrecy is that we really don't know if they are a threat. They don't appear to be a physical threat in that they seem to ignore, and selectively avoid collision with, civilian aircraft when they are encountered by pilots. They appear to be networked together in a loose fashion, and they could conceivably be a threat on a psychological level. Their intent could be to influence human thinking, or even inject a virtual reality into anyone who comes into contact with one of them. People who have close encounters with UFOs often report experiencing things, even though there is no physical evidence those things happened. The other reason for secrecy Is that people may not be able to cope with the knowledge that there are silicon based 'civilizations' throughout the universe that are advanced beyond our imagination. This fact touches the root of religion and human ego.

9/27/2010 10:35:30 PM

carh8r wrote:

Once again the MSM tries to discredit anyone claiming to have seen a UFO. There's something going on in our skies that needs to be investigated not mocked and ingored. Shame on the Washington Post!

9/27/2010 10:31:39 PM

Magoo26 wrote:

This reporter arrived late for his assignment, turned in this article and the Washington Post paid him $$$ in exchange? Hmmm.

9/27/2010 10:25:55 PM

OldQuote wrote:

Entertaining on a really slow news day! Thanks!

9/27/2010 10:19:43 PM

BAS7759 wrote:

I have read worse articles on this sujbect matter from the Post. The fault is not Kelly's. He is doing what he is paid to do. The fault is with the Post's editors and publisher. Retired Air Force officers and other military who have been connected to AMERICAN NUCLEAR FACILITIES testified as to incursions from ET craft 200 TO 500 FEET OVERHEAD IN FULL VIEW INTERFERING WITH OUR NUCLEAR ARMS. The Post sent Kelly. Let's be clear. The coverage of this issue by the Washington Post, the acknowledged political paper of record, has been a national disgrace. The paper will never live this down. While the overall complicity by American media with the UFO/ET truth embargo is now well known, the Washington Post is in for a very rough time. It will be the poster child for the failure of the Fourth Estate in this matter. There is still time for this paper to recover on this issue, but I am not optimistic. The Washington Post has quite simply failed its readers and failed the country, and not just in the UFO/ET matter In issue after issue the Washington Post acts more like a state organ and less like an independent defender of the people's right to know the truth about the government they elect and pay for and even the very nature of reality itself.

9/27/2010 9:22:26 PM

drewliv wrote:

Potentially one of several stories in the future that could be considered some of the largest in the history of humanity and Mr. Kelly your ineptitude to deliver an objective article quite frankly leaves the reader feeling nauseated. To others in your profession this pile of horses manure should be considered an embarrassment.

Perhaps your editor would find you more stimulated in covering The Kadarshian's or Ms. Lohan. At least then Mr. Hiatt and the reader would feel satisfied with your forthrightness in delivering an article that would require your attention be diverted from your bagel on occasion.

To go once further, your amateur gossip girl use of diction makes the Washington Post appear very TMZish. Meanwhile those of us in London laugh at not only your ignorance but the incompetence of your editors to assign an objective journalist to a story.

Good Day,

S/ Andrew Scott Livingston, London

9/27/2010 8:54:16 PM

BillShroyer wrote:

As one with a little bit of genuine insight into the issue, but nobody to talk to about it, I am heartened to see the responses to this childish nose-thumbing article. Granted, the field of UFO research draws out a lot of kooks, but you can't paint everyone as a kook just because you don't like the subject. These are credible individuals who deserve much more respect than the writer of this article ever has or ever likely will.

9/27/2010 8:52:32 PM

DrMidi wrote:

You, Sir, are a Total Ignoramus, period. Next time there's a UFO disclosure event at the National Press Club (there have been about a dozen so far), do us all a favor: Buy a bag of Chips Ahoy at the corner 7-11, and stay home.

9/27/2010 8:44:24 PM

spire wrote:

Me thinks he doth protest too much.

9/27/2010 8:40:01 PM

the5west wrote:

Mr. Kelly,
I find your article to be a waste of time and your tone condesending. These are very serious men and women who served there country at the highest levels, often with above top-secret clearance. Many were responsible for this country's nuclear arsenal. At risk of their good reputation, they have come forth with very serious matters and you talk about the cookies. They deserve your respect. Your story and your newspaper, which continues to ignore this serious issue, I find pathetic.

9/27/2010 8:11:07 PM

rp163 wrote:

John Kelly should be fired so he can go back to school. The other people commenting are correct, this story is embarassing for the washington post. He clearly had no intention of taking it seriously from the beginning and didn't even have the sense to bring an open mind.

Throw this article in the trash. I love how John admits not hearing several things and makes no attempt to find out what he missed. So I appreciate that he is letting his readers know that his incompetence is in full swing.

9/27/2010 7:45:06 PM

threezeroone wrote:

You're a disgrace to journalism! Your editors should put you back on traffic. Even if you (personally) don't find truth to the subject this doesn't give you the right to mock it. Put your cookies where the sun don't shine.

9/27/2010 7:31:21 PM

ununpentium115 wrote:

It appears that the author of this childish mockery of an article forgot to mention that Charles Halt was a Colonel. And I'm sure that all a Colonel and base commander would want to do is tarnish his reputation by making up UFO stories. It's a little embarrassing to read this article. I think it's time to take these types of conferences seriously instead of always attempting make a joke of it. This author may be better off writing or my high school newspaper than the Washington Post. Poor journalism. I'm very disappointed. Grow up buddy. Or better yet, do some of your own research on the topic. Maybe go out on a limb and read Leslie Kean's new book, "UFOs: Generals, Pilots, and Government Officials Go on the Record". Then come back and write a real, more mature article on the subject. And if you're lucky, there may be some cookies waiting for you.

9/27/2010 7:12:03 PM

TheRagingModerate wrote:

Disgraceful excuse for journalism. Skepticism is appropriate, but an entire article written in utter mockery? Why even bother covering it? Apparently the presumed honorable and credible backgrounds of these military witnesses don't warrant an iota of John Kelly's respect? Nor does the extraordinary importance of the subject if these witnesses are telling the truth? WaPo should be ashamed. While John Kelly felt obliged to mock, numerous other media outlets including The Air Force Times covered it in an appropriately sober and objective manner. But I guess Mr. Kelly knows better than everyone else. Nice approach to journalism.

9/27/2010 7:05:25 PM

giantleap wrote:

So six retired US Air Force officers who've spent a lifetime guarding and operating our nuclear missile arsenal come forward to speak of extraordinary and alarming events regarding possible UFOs and all John Kelly can talk about are cookies???

What a buffoon.
This is the biggest story that any reporter at the Post would have a chance to cover (let alone the former "Weekend" Editor) and all Kelly can do is talk about the refreshments served at the National Press Club?

Again, these are men with some of the highest security clearances given by our government, why wouldn't we listen to what they have to say?